We brined our turkey, and it turned out so succulent and tender I didn't even need a knife to carve it. I literally just pried it apart with a big ol' fork. We also stuffed it with onions and orange and lemon rinds, which made the interior savory and juicy in the extreme.

I took a chance on a new sweet potato recipe (Holiday Pirate Sweet Potato and Marshmallow Mush) which turned out just great. We had two kinds of stuffing, green bean casserole, broccoli casserole, mashed potatoes, two kinds of gravy, orange-and-cranberry bread and blue corn jalapeno bread, queso dip and chips, vegetarian pizza, cornbread crumbles, wine, beer, soda, water and champagne. For dessert, coffee, pumpking pie, and a gingerbread house. It was, in short, an astonishing feast.